Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts NAIL the Draft in 3-Round Mock

Starting point is 00:00:00 Today, we are mocking the Colts, but in a good way. Let's get to it. You are Locked On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. All right. Hello, hello, hello. Thanks for tuning in and making us your first listen of the day. This is your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.

Starting point is 00:00:42 And today's show is brought to you by GameTime. Download the GameTime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off of your first purchase. What is up, everybody? This is Jake Arthur and Zach Hicks of HorseshoeHuddle.com. And we haven't done it in a couple weeks, so today we are bringing you another Colts-centric mock draft. We're going three rounds, trying to make it a little more fresh, throwing a couple more wrinkles than we did last time. Of course, pro days have

Starting point is 00:01:12 happened. There's been more workouts. There's been more stuff come out about teams that have shown interest in player XYZ. So we feel like we keep getting more educated as the draft gets closer. So we'll, uh, impart a little bit of our knowledge to you. Uh, so let's go ahead and start in round one, obviously pick 15. We're not going to do trades because that gets kind of chaotic. You're not doing trades. You're not doing trades. Oh, buddy. Okay.

Starting point is 00:01:41 I cheated. I cheated, but you can go first. Here's the thing. Right before we went on, I asked Zach who he was picking, and he wanted to surprise me with all these. So he might be chaotic. We'll see. I'll be chaotic.

Starting point is 00:01:52 Okay. Zach's going to be chaotic. But I'll stick with pick 15. I'm going to take a player who is probably the most commonly knocked player to the Colts, and it's because it just makes too much sense. That's Toledo corner makes too much sense. That's Toledo corner, Quinion Mitchell.

Starting point is 00:02:13 So this is a guy who fills the biggest area need for the Colts at cornerback, and he checks every single box. I think he was Bill DeBallard corner one, was he? Corner two. Corner two. Yeah. Okay, so at pick 15, it just makes too much sense. He's got the size, the length, the speed, the tape. He has aced every step of the pre-draft process from the senior bowl to the combine. I'm he probably interviews great too. I don't know.

Starting point is 00:02:41 But so far the guys is great and matching him up with Juju Brents as your starters on the outside gives you two big lengthy corners. But while Juju Brents is more of a four or five guy, Quinion Mitchell is a four three guy. So you get two guys with size, but one of them can handle the speedier of your, of your opposing receivers. Yeah. And a couple of notes I have with Quinn Young Mitchell and the reason why he jumped all

Starting point is 00:03:07 the way up to cornerback two and build a Ballard this year is yes, he doesn't have the broad jump that you're looking for, for Ballard's typical mold. He doesn't have the arm length or anything like that, but I just get reminded of why the Colts took Rocky Sin back in 2019. Why did they take him in round two? And the big reason why was that Senior Bowl performance. It was how great he was at the Senior Bowl, especially against a guy like Debo Samuel. And we saw this year with Quinion Mitchell.

Starting point is 00:03:35 I mean, anyone who tried him in the Senior Bowl this year was getting shut down. It was Quinion Mitchell's event, and he's had one of the best pre-draft processes I've ever seen from a prospect. I mean, he went from, you know, oh, we kind of like this Toledo guy, maybe in round two to this might be cornerback one. This might be a top 15, top 10 pick. And he deserves it.

Starting point is 00:03:54 He's a fantastic player. Did some really good things against Marvin Harrison Jr. in college as well. So, yeah, I love Quinion Mitchell. I think, you know, you probably want to get him more in a press man type scheme, which the Colts really aren't. But when the Colts do go to their cover three looks, those three by one sets, their backside guy is typically in press man. And they just weren't able to do that last year because they didn't have a guy who could do that. So Quinion Mitchell would come in and be that competitive press man guy from day one. So I love Quinion Mitchell. Mitchell is one of my favorite overall players in the entire draft. So the Colts took him at 15. I'd be pretty pumped. Yeah. And the fun thing about that, you mentioned the press man. I feel like one of the bigger concerns about him coming out of Toledo that people mentioned was he didn't play man enough. He was played a lot of off. So there you go. The guy has maybe not in a game situation shown he could play press, but you know, everything we've seen from him in this pre-draft process and the one-on-ones and stuff at the senior bowl, it looks like he's able to do it. So Zach, who you got for us? Maybe not at pick 15. go too crazy with this now when we do our round three talk in in the third segment I will have

Starting point is 00:05:05 two players because of this trade back so I'll be quick with that uh but I traded back with the Falcons to the 23rd pick for two third round picks a third rounder this year and a future third just you know I didn't want to go too crazy with it don't want to make it too too massive there my other option was taking Brian Thomas Jr at 15 but I feel like we've done that multiple times at this point so I moved back to 23 took a player who I could see the Colts taking this guy at 15, but I decided to move back a little bit. So it makes a little bit more sense. And that is Texas wide receiver, Xavier Worthy, Xavier Worthy at 23.

Starting point is 00:05:38 Now, size wise, not a Chris Fowler type guy. Every other metric though, is 100% what the Colts look for at wide receiver. I mean, you're looking at a vertical, you're looking at broad jump. You're looking at the 40 time you're looking at production on the field. You're looking at special teams ability. I mean, he's one of the best punt returners in this class as well. And I just think that there's a lot of things about his game that just scream Shane Steigen and Chris Ballard. I mean, when you're studying the Colts offense last year, a couple of things that really stand out is the pre-snap motion, adopting kind of that cheat motion that the Miami Dolphins were doing,

Starting point is 00:06:13 but doing that with a guy like Josh Downs, where Downs is fast. Like, don't get me wrong. Downs is not a slow player by any means, but he's not that next level type of fast. And then when they were doing with Alec Pierce, Alec Pierce was more so doing that to be a blocker. Now insert that type of scheme with a guy who runs a legit four, two flat or four, two, one, whatever it was, you know, record breaking speed. Defenses are going to have to be kept honest by that because he's going to just stretch defenses so much. So, so horizontally vertically, he's going to open up your offensive scheme so much. I just see that trait that he brings the offense being so valuable I see Shane Steichen falling in love with a guy who reminds him of Devante Smith that they took really high in Philadelphia a guy you could isolate on the

Starting point is 00:06:53 back side and win one-on-one vertically a guy that you can run on those deep over routes a guy you can have in motion in the backfield and quick screens in your RPO game I think Xavier Worthy just makes so much sense for this Colts offense. And again, I could see them taking him at 15. I know it'd be a little bit weird for Chris Ballard because before last year, he's never taken smaller receivers. And this will be two years in a row of taking smaller receivers. But if the Colts really want to get more explosive on offense and get more effective and efficient on offense, a player like Xavier Worthy is a legit piece that puts you over the top. I legitimately think this is a Deshaun Jackson type of player. I think he

Starting point is 00:07:30 can win vertically. I think he can win underneath. I think he's got that easy speed that nobody can really contest with. And I think Xavier Worthy is going to be a really good NFL player. And I think he'd be even better in a scheme like Shane Steichen. So yeah, I moved back to 23 here, took Xavier Worthy, and it's off to the races with this Colts offense now. I love it. I love it because just like you mentioned, it's maybe not a Chris Ballard pick on size, but we've seen last year that he's open to, you know,

Starting point is 00:07:57 the suggestions of Reggie Wayne, Shane Steichen. And let's not mention that Shane, Reggie, and Jim Bob Cooter were all down in Texas for that pro day. A lot of people like to connect A.D. Mitchell maybe because of the size and speed as well. But I'm with you. I think Worthy makes even more sense. You mentioned the orbit motion and Tyreek Hill. Jordan Roderick just had a piece come out, I think, today kind of talking about the origins of that and how it caught on so quickly.

Starting point is 00:08:25 We saw the Colts adopt it throughout the season. The Dolphins used it with Tyreek Hill. And I think that is an excellent point to make because I can just immediately see Shane throwing him into that role. You mentioned the special teams ability. You know, there's stuff going on with the kickoff. They're tinkering with that. That means guys like Worthy, who could be more dangerous in that department, could be an X factor there too. So I really, really like that one. There's different ways you can use them. Plus, I think this is something you and I spoke about earlier in the pre-draft process, but

Starting point is 00:08:59 Anthony Richardson staying healthy, Worthy having a quarterback who is more than capable of getting the ball downfield and hitting him in stride that could unlock him to the point where you see how dangerous he is based on these testing scores and some of the film, but you get a player who's way more dangerous than the pros because of what's around them. Yeah. Watch any Texas game last year and tell me that quarterback they had there knew how to throw a deep ball. It just, it wasn't there for them on film last year and tell me that quarterback they had there knew how to throw a deep ball. It just it wasn't there for them on film last year and getting a guy like Worthy or even a guy like A.D. Mitchell. I mean, I like A.D. Mitchell, too, but getting a guy like Worthy with the arm talent of Anthony Richardson,

Starting point is 00:09:39 you're going to see a lot of explosive plays in this offense, not only by him, but again, just by him stretching a defense and getting Michael Pittman Jr. open over the middle of the field. It just opens so much for your passing game. And I love the fit of him there with the Colts, as long as they just don't go corner in round one. I know they have to go corner at some point, but if they don't go corner, I'm all for Xavier Worthy. Yeah, so first round is in the books.

Starting point is 00:10:00 Zach is getting tradie. And there's some big needs still on the board but we've addressed two of the top three already uh so what are we gonna do in round two let's see say goodbye to busted brackets because fandu lets you bet on every game of the tourney whether you're betting on a big upset or one seat it's time to go dancing on america's number one sports book right now new customers you guys get two $200 in bonus bets if your first $5 bet wins. That's $200 to use on point spreads, money lines. You can even pick who's going to win it all.

Starting point is 00:10:34 Around here, Purdue has finally survived long enough to get people excited about potentially the Final Four. So go ahead and throw all your money on Zach Eadie. The guy's the truth. Just visit Fandle.com slash locked on a bet on college hoops until they cut down the nets. All right, round two. So, so far I took cornerback Quinnion Mitchell. Zach traded back a little bit, gained an extra third this year,

Starting point is 00:11:02 an extra third next year while acquiring an third next year, while acquiring an explosive element on offense in Xavier Worthy. So who you got for us next? Yeah, so now I have to go corner in round two, because if you're looking at this depth chart, you have to you have to take wide receiver and corner in the first two rounds, or maybe safety and corner however you want to do it there. And I think we've said this a lot on recent shows I don't like this cornerback class outside the top couple guys and I really do think that's going to hurt the Colts come draft day but I wanted to take another upside guy here another high high speed a great senior bowl type guy and that's Max Melton cornerback from Rutgers I love it brother to Bo Melton the receiver who made a

Starting point is 00:11:41 couple plays last year uh in uh Green Bay but, Max Melton from Rutgers, really, really fantastic slot corner guy who can play on the outside, long arms, fits everything that the Colts like at the position. And I think this is the type of guy where the Colts are really lacking in their cornerback room. You know, you look at this cornerback room overall, they have Juju Branson, they have Jalen Jones, who are just two technically sound, big physical corners. Then you got Kenny Moore, you know, the explosive long arm slot corner who can do it all in the run game and makes it plays in the pass game. They don't have that super athlete, though. I mean, Dallas Flowers was looking like that, but who knows what he's going to look like coming back

Starting point is 00:12:18 from his Achilles injury. They don't have that high level athlete who has the potential to be, you know, on the other side of the field and kind of run with receivers, you know, they thought they were going to get that in Darius Rush. Rush never really got healthy through camp. And they lost that project player that they could really build on where a guy like Max Melton, I think he can play some gunner for you early on. And then if he surprises in camp and has a great, you know, just camp and everything like that, you can even start him earlier, get him out there on the outside early. can be creative with it get him in the slot sometimes get Kenny back on the outside if Kenny gets injured or anything like that you have another viable slot corner I think Max

Starting point is 00:12:52 Melton is great for the future he's great for upside and also he's a player who can come in and compete for snaps right away it's not my most ideal second round pick here because again I feel a little forced to go corner, but I do love the upside of Max Melton. I like a lot of what he did on film. It has some really, really good clips there. So yeah, Max Melton, cornerback from Rutgers here in round two. I really liked that one. That's another kid that had a good showing at the senior bowl. He does something that the Colts defense has been taught since I've been covering them. And that is play to the whistle, always try to strip the ball.

Starting point is 00:13:26 He had a play at the Senior Bowl where Marshawn Lloyd was running up the sideline, and he just kept at it, stripped the ball, and recovered it all in the same play. And that's very like Juju Brents-ish. So it's a guy who already kind of plays stylistically like the Colts like to do with that effort. He's a to-the-whistle guy for sure. But the big thing about him for me is what you mentioned, the versatility to play inside and out.

Starting point is 00:13:50 A lot of people are projecting him to the nickel right now. And as we know, Kenny Moore had an awesome season last year, totally rebounded from the down 20-22. But health throughout his career, especially this later part, has been a little bit of a question mark. Not severe injuries, but missing a few games at a time sometimes. So you got to have a guy that can play the slot. Right now you're looking at Chris Lamans. Tony Brown was someone you relied on last year at points, so you don't have much in terms of the nickel. You can

Starting point is 00:14:23 get Julian Blackman if you re-sign him, but he's your safety. Nick Cross is someone they say they trust to do that, but we haven't seen that yet. So you got to get a guy who factors in, and especially if he could provide depth inside and outside, if he can earn a starting role on the outside, I really like the possibilities of that. So that's a guy who, again, size, athletically, length, he fits the Colts. And I really like how he actually plays on the field. Yeah, yeah. Max Melton, I think, is going to be a really good corner in the NFL.

Starting point is 00:14:53 He just needs the right time and the right scheme. And I think the Colts could be that scheme for him. So in a day two cornerback class that I don't love, I do really like Max Melton. For sure, for sure. So for me, I went corner first. Now I got't love. I do really like Max Melton. For sure. For sure. So for me, I went corner first. Now I got to get that pass catcher. And so Brock Bowers is going to be off the board. So do I look at like Jatavian Sanders, who I think is like the last tight end worth taking early? No, I do not. I'm going to go ahead with a wide receiver. That's a guy just

Starting point is 00:15:22 watched in person Malachi Corley from Western kentucky uh so very different from xavier worthy but i think you could do a lot of things with him similarly in terms of motion and things like that when you watch him in motion at western kentucky he does a lot of really good damage coming off motion and getting open in the middle of the field uh that's a guy who he, I think he's pretty smart when it comes to playing from the slot, like Josh Downs is, knows where to find those open spots and coverage. He's got, you know, he's prone to some concentration drops. Like I've seen some people ding his hands, but I really don't think it's that big a deal to me. He's a guy that is such a run after catch guy that it's kind of putting the cart before the horse and he's just thinking about

Starting point is 00:16:09 running first. So it's not a big deal to me. He ran a 4.45 at his pro day, which checked a big box for a lot of people. Marcus Mosher made a good point. He's like anything under 4.5 for me is good and it was 4.45. A lot of people there had even lower than that. So, uh, he's faster than what I think Western Kentucky had him put on film because they were so reliant on him and fed him so many short things. So he could run after the catch that you didn't see a ton of him threatening all areas of the field. But there was a scout, a scout or a receiver's coach from the Steelers towards the end of the workout that was, that was requesting he run different routes and everything. And he looked really good doing it. He is this year, Steve Smith stamp of approval, and they drafted his last year guy with Josh Downs, the Colts did. So Corley really good. But I was I

Starting point is 00:17:06 was tossing up between him and a couple other receivers, mainly Troy Franklin from Oregon. And one thing that really put it over the edge for me was Corley is a really effective open field blocker as a receiver. And that's one thing that like, that's one reason Alec Pierce almost never comes off the field is he's a really good blocker. one thing that like, that's one reason Alec Pierce almost never comes off the field is he's a really good blocker. So if you get someone who's going to eventually replace Pierce, perhaps, then they have to be able to provide some of the same strengths. And I think Corley does a lot of really good things. You know, he's compared to Debo Samuel, I don't think it's to that level. you could just use him in a variety of ways similarly

Starting point is 00:17:45 to how San Francisco uses Samuel but for me I guess the the nerdy thing about it is I really like that he blocks yeah yeah I think Corley could be a little bit redundant with Michael Pittman Jr. but when you have a scheme that is so predicated on the RPO game that's so predicated on pre-snap motion and run after catch, for a team that had nobody who could have run after the catch last year, it would be valuable to add a guy like Corley. I mean, if you look at the Colts' receiver room last year, they had the fewest amount of wide receivers forcing missed tackles after the catch.

Starting point is 00:18:19 I think it was only like 14 forced missed tackles after the catch last year. Not great. Yeah, not great at all. Corley had 41 alone last year. And his nickname is the Yak King. Yeah, no, and he was. He was in college. That's all they used him for.

Starting point is 00:18:32 They used him for Yak. They used him after the catch. And I think when you look at this cold scheme, you look at how Michael Pittman Jr. was motioned into the backfield a lot last year as a lead blocker, as the sniffer back off the line, basically playing tight end. We had that pre-stab motion with Downs doing a little whirling dervishes there in the backfield to present to you know confused defenders I think when you get a player like Corley back there who is essentially a running back coming into the backfield at times I do

Starting point is 00:19:00 think that adds another dynamic to your offense so while while, again, I think Corley and Pittman Jr. would serve kind of the same type of role, I can't ever say I'm opposed to a player like Corley who can create after the catch, who can go in the backfield, who can do all these versatile things for your offense. And when you have a guy like Shane Steichen who is in love with mesh, who's in love with RPO quick hitters, getting a guy like Corley where that ball is going to be in his hands two yards down the field and letting him work after the catch. It just fits perfectly with what the Colts like to do.

Starting point is 00:19:28 So I like it. Again, I feel like you need to have a vertical threat out there if him and Pittman are both going to be on the field too. But I like a guy like Corley in this Colts system for sure. Yeah, absolutely. And that's another guy that we've seen the Colts pay special attention to a handful of pro day so far they did have a few guys out there Jim Bob Cooter Brian Bratton who is an offensive quality control

Starting point is 00:19:51 coach but he he mainly focuses on the receivers and then they also had an area scout out there as well and they met with him after the pro day so that's just that's not me just pulling a rabbit out of the hat like I think there's legitimate interest there. But no, I think you're right when it comes to you don't necessarily have a field stretcher out there. Corley is a hair quicker or a hair faster than Pittman. But I think you can also use other ways to get guys open down the field. Maybe you have Will Mallory as a field stretching tight end in that situation carrying someone up the seam while you have pitman and corley going over the middle so psychin's a guy who i trust to be creative with that type of stuff yeah yeah yeah for sure now coming up guys we're going to

Starting point is 00:20:37 get to our round three jake has one pick remaining i have two because i cheated so we're going to talk all about round three coming up here in just a second but first buying tickets to your favorite events shouldn't be stressful game time is the fast and easy way to buy tickets for all sports music comedy and theater near you with killer deals on last minute tickets and their best price guarantee you can stop stressing over the tickets and start getting hyped for the fun that you'll have I personally love game time because I feel like being spontaneous and going to a show or something on a whim, I can go right to them and not have to browse a bunch of different places with their flash deals,

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Starting point is 00:21:34 game time download the game time app create an account and use code locked on nfl for 20 off your first purchase terms apply again create an account and redeem code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off. Download game time today. Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. All right, Jake. So since you only have one pick in the third round, you weren't savvy like me and moving back. Sure.

Starting point is 00:21:58 I'll know better next time. So since you only have one pick here in the third round, we'll let you start it off here. Who did you end up taking? Did you actually go safety like the, like the needs suggest, or did you stray away from the board a little bit and take, you know,

Starting point is 00:22:11 maybe a better value pick there. Yeah. So with the two, two of the biggest needs checked off for my draft, I think by round three, you're kind of getting to the area where you can start to go best player available, especially when safety isn't a great draft class uh however i took one of the few uh digestible safeties from this draft uh one that

Starting point is 00:22:34 that fits the colts with uh utah's cole bishop uh now this is a guy who has experience playing in the box and playing free safety uh but let's just forecast that the Colts are going to resign Julian Blackman or they'll have strong safety settled. I like Bishop Moore as a free safety. I don't necessarily think he's physical or aggressive enough to play in the box. Now you can, that can always develop, I suppose, but I think he's a lot more responsible and rangy of a player in the back half. And that's kind of what the Colts need. They need someone who will be that last line of defense to meet the ball and not blow coverage. And that might sound too simple to pick in round three, but I do think Bishop brings a lot to the table. He's a great athlete.

Starting point is 00:23:24 I feel like he was one of the few safeties that actually has had a good pre-draft process. He had a decent senior bowl as well. He could take the ball away. Again, he's versatile. He can do some stuff in the slot as well. Utah defensive backs always seem to be able to wear multiple hats. I mean, just look at Sione Vaki.

Starting point is 00:23:44 That guy is positionless. Yeah, I really like Bishop going back there. And whether it's, again, Blackman and you form an all Utah secondary at safety or Nick Cross is your new strong safety, whatever. I just like having a more responsible safety group. You know, I think we're all just overseeing these blown coverages and the mental mistakes. Yeah, no, I agree.

Starting point is 00:24:12 I agree. And I like Cole Bishop. He's one of, like you said, like two or three safeties that I like in this class. And I think he's a player who can contribute from day one. Or if you bring in a veteran free safety, you can have Bishop be his backup for a year and maybe get him ready for next season after that veteran departs in free agency.

Starting point is 00:24:29 So I like Bishop a lot. And with my third round pick, I'm also going to go safety, but I'm going with my safety one in this class. Again, that speaks to the safety class that a guy who I think is the best safety in the class, I'm saying, okay, he'll probably be there in round three. But that's Texas Tech's Daydrian Taylor Demerson. I think this is a fantastic player on film.

Starting point is 00:24:52 I really do think in a weak safety class, he deserves to be getting fringe round one, you know, early round two hype. I understand why he's going to probably drop to round three, but I really, really love his film. He looks a lot like Julian Blackman on film to me, where, you know, he's not the most physically imposing player in terms of his size. He's only 5'11", 197. So again, not this kind of guy that you're going to have like a Cam Chancellor type in the box and play sub linebacker, but you can have him over top. He has great ball

Starting point is 00:25:20 skills. He had four picks last year as that rangy center fielder there for Texas Tech. He's a guy who has great recognition skills, comes downhill with some fire in his pads, ran a 4-4-1 as well. Again, in the safety class that doesn't have a bunch of great athletes, ran a 4-4-1, jumped 38 inches in the vertical jump. So did some good testing, was a standout, the shrine bowl as well. I really do think when more people get eyes on this guy before the draft, you'll start seeing more hype go his way and more people moving him up at boards i know in the indie draft guide we're going to have him as a top i think three or four safety in the class as well so uh dadrian taylor demerson i'm very very very high on and the colts took him in round three

Starting point is 00:25:59 you know look i don't want to start a bunch of young safeties next year but if you're starting him at free and nick cross it's strong whatever let's go let's roll baby let's do it, I don't want to start a bunch of young safeties next year, but if you're starting him at free and Nick Cross at strong, whatever, let's go, let's roll, baby. Let's do it. But I don't know if you've watched him yet, Jake. He was actually a shrine bowl guy, not a senior bowl guy, but he's really, really fun on film. Yeah. I haven't watched him yet, but I saw you mention him on Twitter the other day.

Starting point is 00:26:18 So I immediately kind of bumped him up my watch list. It sounds good to me. I mean, a, a rangy athletic free safety with ball skills. I think that's always in demand. Um, the Colts have had guys in the recent past. I mean, shoot, even Rodney Thomas two years ago was able to kind of fill that sort of role. Um, so yeah, that, that, that sounds really good to me. Also the Texas tech safety that is not a conspiracy theorist yes yes well the other one Tyler Owens actually he hasn't tested yet this offseason well he did his I think he did like the broad jump yeah he did something yeah he did something remarkable at the combine other than his media

Starting point is 00:26:57 session so he's Jesse Owens grandson I believe so he was gonna run like low four two right right right right yeah he was gonna run like low four twos. Yeah, he was going to run like low four twos. But anyway, yeah, Tyler Owens is a very good player as well. I wouldn't mind him on day three. But I digress. We're going to pick my other player here at round three just to fill out the last couple of minutes. And I do think that round three to round four range is a great range for the Colts in this draft to go guard or interior offensive lineman. I think they need to keep building their depth on the offensive line. Will Fries and Ryan Kelly are both set to be free agents after the season. And look, I know Chris Ballard is likely to get both these guys great extensions that

Starting point is 00:27:35 keep them around forever and eat up all the cap space that the Colts have next year. But just in case one of them does leave or one of them doesn't perform or Ryan Kelly retires, that's always a possibility at 33 years old. I think the Colts need to keep adding to this interior. So I'm going to add a player from South Dakota State. We know Chris Ballard loves, you know, those FCS players. Two-time national champion, South Dakota State, Mason McCormick. Shrine Bulls stand out as well.

Starting point is 00:28:02 Again, maybe I'm drafting too many Shrine Bull guys for Chris Ballard here but mason mccormick uh when you watch his film physical run blocker he gets after it in the run game um elite athlete you watch you watch at the senior bowl or at the uh at the combine you hit all the metrics that you want from from an interior offensive line i think he even hit the uh the coveted 4-4 shuttle time uh metric for linemen, where it's like an 85% hit rate that those guys are going to be contributors in the NFL if they hit that. So a lot of good stuff on film. I mean, he's a little bit older prospect, but every year he's dominated in college. He started like 60 games in his career, a two-time national champion. There's a lot to like on his film. I don't think he's there as a pass blocker yet. And that's why he's going to fall a little

Starting point is 00:28:43 bit further than what he should. But when you have a team like the Colts, where the Colts want to run the ball, they want to be aggressive running the ball. And if they're going to throw it, they're going to sit in those, those RPOs and those quick hitters, a guy like that kind of fits what the Colts want to do. He brings that physicality, brings that nasty mentality, and he brings the upside with his athletic ability. So Mason McCormick, I think on draft day, being a guy they take in the third round or the fourth round makes so much sense. I mean, again, he could be a future replacement for Ryan Kelly at center,

Starting point is 00:29:12 or it could be your Will Fries replacement in 2025 if Fries departs as well. Or he can just be a long-term backup, a really good long-term backup for the team. Never hurts to add more depth. And I think McCormick could be great regardless of where they're going to have him. I like that. It's pretty on brand for the Colts I mean a you know a lower level

Starting point is 00:29:30 competition offensive lineman who's athletic but has experience in the middle rounds that's that's their game mid to late you know we've seen that throughout the last several years even dating before Chris Ballard I mean Danny Pinter is a recent example, Jake Witt. But that, I mean, finding those interior offensive linemen, that's kind of like running back where you can find eventual starters anywhere in the draft. So I really liked that. I mean, the experience and the athleticism is something I look for from those guys and all those games played that you just mentioned. And then, you know, being athletic and being from a smaller level of competition going and showing out the shrine bowl that's a good one um if there's anywhere they could they could beef up some depth interior makes sense like you mentioned

Starting point is 00:30:14 fries and kelly kelly potentially retiring at some point in the next couple years you never know um and fries although he's he's coming into his own, if you're looking, if there is a weak spot on the Colts starting five, I guess that's it. You know what I mean? You never know what it looks like when one of these guys comes in and you put the pads on and get them into training camp. Yeah, exactly. Now, if you guys want to learn about all these prospects that we talked about today, the Indie Draft Guides pre-orders

Starting point is 00:30:44 are still open, guys. $8.99 with code 8.99 with code draft miss all caps and you get access to an essential piece of reading for colts fans both before and after the draft featuring 225 in-depth scouting reports features and much more click the link in our show notes to pre-order today and make sure you guys go to the comment section below this video and tell me how great i am for beating jake in this mock draft battle uh i had to cheat this time. He took Brock Bowers last time, which was a cheat code. So I cheated this time to add more picks to what I was doing, but our next one,

Starting point is 00:31:13 I'll trade back to, or I'll trade up. Who knows? You'll trade all of your picks for Marvin Harrison jr. Is what you'll do. And people will, we'll celebrate you there. Not even,

Starting point is 00:31:21 I'll be more chaotic. Go up to number one. I now have Caleb Williams. Now I have two quarterbacks. How does that work? And if you guys don't already, make sure to follow me at LockedAllColts, at JakeArthurNFL, and at Zach Hicks to all on Twitter. Also subscribe to us on YouTube, wherever you list your podcasts. We love your guys' ratings and reviews, and we'll catch you guys back here in the beautiful afternoon tomorrow.

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